Category: Weekly Reflections

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Today we did a class meeting via Zoom. I know there can be downfalls to Zoom but I actually really like it. I definitely miss the social aspect of learning but it was nice as a one off. I was able to still focus on the class while also get my daughter to her soccer tournament and I appreciate that aspect!

So in saying that, because I was in my truck at my daughter’s soccer game, I played around with the blurred background image hoping people wouldn’t notice where I was. I didn’t quite work, people were still able to guess I was in a vehicle but it was definitely better than not having that option. I’ll need to go back into Zoom and play around with the different virtual background and see if there is something that may work better next time.

I also didn’t know that you can use Zoom to record and make videos. It makes sense but I just never thought about Zoom in that way. It would obviously really benefit if you had multiple users making a video together but I could also just use Zoom to produce videos on my own.

Another different way to make videos and to store and share information is through YouTube. I have to admit, I’ve never really been a YouTube person. I’ll access some videos if I’m trying to learn about a topic or do some research, but I haven’t used it for much more than that. Today also happened to be the 20th anniversary of Youtube!! I know 20 years sounds like a long time, but it reminds me that technology and educational technology is still pretty new. It’s developing at a rapid pace but we are still learning so much. Michael mentioned having a YouTube profile that maintains a lower profile is also a great way to produce educational videos or a great way to connect and share with your students. We can create a profile that is ‘unlisted’ and it is very accessible at little to no cost. This is something I have never thought about before but I can see the benefits. I’d really like to look into this topic more deeply. I think it’s a great option for someone like me who isn’t very techy but is still looking to be a part of the educational technology world.

Videos made in Zoom and YouTube are a way of building my resource library as a teacher candidate that will help me support and connect with my future learners but I also wanted to think more about digital curation. I currently have just started using Google docs to store and share my work. Before that, I just kept files on my computer and they were somewhat organized but didn’t really allow me to network with other people. What I like most about Google docs is that we can share resources quite easily and I can open these documents and resources from any other computer. It’s not just locked into my own files on my own computer.

With my digital curation, some tips I took away from today’s class was to be intentional, use good names so it’s easier to remember and find things and to get started! Being a networked teacher and having another way to connect with others teachers and students will not only make my life easier but it’s a great form of multi-modal learning and ties into UDL. I need to stop thinking of educational technology as something outside of my scope that I don’t know anything about. It doesn’t need to be complicated and I can use the tools I already know and build from there.

Photo by NordWood Themes on Unsplash

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

This week we had a guest speaker named Rich McCue from the Digital Scholarship Commons at UVIC. He came in to help us learn, practice and navigate video and audio literacy. Specifically, we spoke about iMovie and podcast creations.

Since I am completely new to this learning, I found today really challenging. I found some of the language being used in class intimidating in the sense that I didn’t really know what it meant and I was pretty slow at navigating the information but the good news is, the website that we were using to practice was pretty user friendly!

lib.uvic.ca/vid

I didn’t manage to get through all the steps in the practice guide, but this is the video I made so far. I was able to open and navigate iMovie as well as cut, edit, splice and add audio.

I also think it would be a really great idea for me to go check out the Learning Commons or the Digital Scholarship Commons. Rich mentioned there are a lot of free resources including 3D printers, workshops, generative AI, video editing and podcasting materials as well as additional information. This also includes borrowing gear/equipment which may be really great for some of our podcast assignments coming up this term.

So unfortunately, I was so slow in learning the iMovie that I didn’t get to play around much with the podcast practice but I look forward to reading through the slides and taking my time.

Additional to the learning, Rich offered some great tips. When making videos, Rich suggested using stabilizers or tripods, use external audio, be aware of wind or outside noise that may come across in your audio, test audio on location and again, be aware of surroundings that may distract from your video success. He also gave us some editing tips. The one I got to test out today was to scrub through the video and to use the space bar when pausing and playing to make cuts or edits. This seemed to work out well, but I have lots more practicing to do:)

Lastly, Rich gave a really interesting piece of advice and that was satisfaction rates go down dramatically with bad audio (vs video). So my main take away today was to keep practicing and pay extremely close attention to all his audio tips and tricks when making videos or podcasts if I want to be successful.

Thanks Rich!

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Photo by Nghia Nguyen on Unsplash

WOW! Today was an eye opener for me. I really loved how we discussed specific tools we can use and how they can make an impact on our teaching and our learners.

I’ve been using PowerPoint since the dawn of time! I’ve made some pretty bad presentations. It was the tool of choice during my undergrad 25 years ago and I had no clue it was capable of creating the graphics and multimedia that was presented today. In class today, we had the opportunity to practice using a tool and creating images and I chose to practice in Powerpoint. Although I still have a lot of exploring and learning to do, I can see how it can be a great tool for both teachers and learners a like. I personally find it more user friendly and accessible than other tools such as Canva and I love that it’s an older tool that is being explore and utilized in different ways.

I found this 3D image on Powerpoint and tried multiple ways to get embed it with all its moving parts but I couldn’t figure it out. None the less, it’s a fun 3D image. I also managed to play with this text and place it on top of the image.

Another thought from today is the idea about how multimedia and graphics can be used to compliment my work. With the boom and technology, specifically AI and social media, I haven’t thought of technology in the best light. But after today, I can see more of a positive path with how technology can be incorporated into the classroom.

More specifically, today we learnt about the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning and the Dual-Coding Theory (auditory and visual). I love the idea of leveraging together multiple ways of learning in an active process based on prior knowledge. The idea is that people can learn more deeply from multiple ways of processing the information. It’s a great reminder as a teacher candidate who is passionate about providing UDL in my classroom. Multimedia not only engages these multiple channels of learning but it also allows for imagination, creativity and interaction. More specifically for the teacher, it can create a sense of ownership, is an adaptable resource that can be updated, provides inspiration for your learners, is sharable and can be used over and over with simple edits.

In closing, what I think I took away from this more than anything is that by using interactive sessions using basic multimedia tools, interaction doesn’t need to be difficult. It can be low tech. It can bring the outside in, open the imagination and can lead to further conversations. It also helps with engagement of all learners. There is definitely a place for multimedia and graphic tools in the classroom for both teachers and learners. I’m excited to keep practicing and learning more.

Photo by Ian Schneider on Unsplash

Photo by Rodion Kutsaiev on Unsplash

This week we had a guest speaker, Jesse Miller, who came and spoke to the class about personal mobile technology in the classroom, balancing use and regulation and navigating professional boundaries.

I was quite impressed to hear about Jesse’s resume. He sounds like a very accomplished professional in a world that is changing and evolving extremely quickly.

The discussion surrounding personal mobile use and how we are responsible creators both inside and outside of the classroom was very interesting and a bit of a scary reminder that as educators we must remain extremely careful with what we post, how we post, where we post and who we are posting to.

At one point Jesse asked what terrifies us about 2025. I commented that I’m not sure I’m terrified but the rapid pace and feeling of uncertainty around AI and social media is quite scary to me on multiple levels. As an educator, we speak about the positive and negatives surrounding technology, including AI and social media, often.

Although Jesse was quite convincing and I could tell he was a passionate supporter of technology and AI, I have a bit of a different opinion about the benefits.

I belelive there is a direct correlation between the usage of social media and AI with our societal mental health issues. The development of technology came on too fast and too strong with little to no legislation on how to navigate it. I’ve read various articles and I’ve done research in other classes that have pointed to the negative effects of AI on our youth. It’s scary! And social media is no different. It’s not empowering our society. It’s not something I want to encourage our youth to spend time with or on.

Now in saying this, I do understand the importance of balance and I do understand this is the way the world is going. And I do see benefits of technology when it’s being used as a tool or for creating community and connections. But it’s being relied on too heavily and we are seeing this within our world. Humans are no longer developing social emotional skills and although they are connected online, they are drastically disconnected from their lives. Educating and giving our learners the skills to be successful is important and I’m hopeful that maybe one day, stricter laws, legislation, protection and navigation surrounding technology will be in place to protect every individual using it but in the meantime I’m skeptical.

Jesse’s reminders about protecting ourselves as an educator really hit home though. It’s so easy to get wrapped up in all the hype and want to be part of a larger online community but I know I need to protect myself and my learners.

Lastly, Jesse brought up a tool for educators called DIFFIT. It’s a site that has resources, tools and teaching materials for educators. It looks really great and I’m going to continue to check out what it has to offer.

https://web.diffit.me

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Over the last week I was able to get my website up and running and we had a great class learning about Most Likely to Succeed, FIPPA and Open Education.

The film, Most Likely to Succeed was super interesting to me. What I loved most about it was the ability to create a great sense of belonging for these students and to watch them succeed and feel a sense of accomplishment at school was something I think we all strive for as educators. It really got me thinking…is our current education system allowing our students to thrive? Are they happy? Do they feel successful at the end of the day, month, year? And as educators, are we preparing them for the future that lays ahead? I realize that there may be no perfect answers to these questions and I also realize that not all learners would thrive in an inquiry based education system but I can’t help but feel it may be better then what they are doing now.

https://www.whatschoolcouldbe.org/most-likely-to-succeedhttps://www.whatschoolcouldbe.org/most-likely-to-succeed

I do believe that we are slowly heading in the right direction and that our education system is slowly changing and I can only hope that as a teacher candidate myself, that I can become part of the solution (not the problem)!

In speaking about FIPPA this week, learning my role as an individual and as an educator was very interesting. The world of technology including information sharing, images, videos and AI are blowing up quicker than I can keep up. This was a great overview and a reminder for me about how to progress responsibly. I also think this is a great time for educators to be constantly teaching and reminding our students about privacy, information and how to protect themselves within the use of technology and social media as well.

Photo by Sergey Zolkin on Unsplash

Lastly, discussing Open Education for me this week was great!! I felt way more supported coming out of class knowing about more resources I could access and feeling more confident in how to use images and link in material into my website or my future classroom properly. I had never heard of Pexels and Unsplash before. After checking these out, I’m not sure I will ever use a random Google image again. The quality was great and now knowing these are sharable images and I can give thanks back to the creator is great. I also did a quick check of the OER Commons for curriculum materials and I’m excited to go back and take a deeper look into that resource. I can see it being extremely useful during practicum.

https://unsplash.com

https://www.pexels.com

https://oercommons.org